The present invention relates to an apparatus for cleaning the insulators of live power lines by means of helicopters.
As known, deposits of dust and electrically conducting particles form on the insulators of high-voltage power lines, also due to the electrostatic fields, and can compromise the insulating power of the ceramic material or glass of said insulators and trigger discharge arcs which damage the line and the pylons which support it until the supply of power is interrupted.
This phenomenon, which becomes more frequent as the voltage of the line rises and as the content of particles, suspended corpuscles and sea-salt in the atmosphere increases, necessitates periodic removal of said deposits from the insulators, especially in the regions of connection between one insulator and another, where discharge arcs are triggered more easily.
These maintenance operations are currently performed manually by specialized personnel after disconnecting the line from the voltage source, and this entails considerable maintenance costs and more importantly the interruption of the delivery of power, with obvious practical disadvantages.